Australia, Guy Sebastian, 1

Today the Wiwi Jury – our in-house panel of music unprofessionals – grabbed some extra strong coffees to counteract the crazy jet lag in Australia! After taking in the sights of the Sydney Opera House, posing for cute Instas with koalas and kangaroos and Kylie, we hit up Canberra to check out Guy Sebastian and his Eurovision 2015 song  “Tonight Again”. He turned our world upside down – but was that a good thing? Read on to find out…

Australia’s Eurovision 2015 song

Reviews: Guy Sebastian with ‘Tonight Again’

Angus: G’day Guy Sebastian! ‘Tonight Again’ is jazzy, bouncy and swings. Super infectious and with more attitude than a boxing kangaroo this has easily earned Australia’s golden ticket to the Grand Final. Since this is a one-year and one-year-only gig, smart play to go out with a bang.

Score: 8/10

Bogdan: Well done, Wizard of Oz! Guy Sebastian’s song is simply infectious, richly layered and dance-tastic, and his voice is undeniably stellar. Europe should be spellbound by Australia’s entry and I wouldn’t be surprised if it won Eurovision, despite raising some eyebrows at first. And I hope that they either open or close the final with “Tonight Again”. Regardless of the producers’ choice for the running order, I agree with Guy when he sings, “This is one tough act to follow.”

Score: 10/10

Padraig: Last year, Denmark gave us a bargain basement Bruno Mars. Now Australia give us a slightly more high-end version, but a knock-off nonetheless. However, write this off at your peril. This retro, funky, jazzy sound is very now, and extremely populist – we’re only just escaping the six month long stranglehold of “Uptown Funk”. It’s an encouraging debut from the Aussies, and if they promise to keep up the standard (or even better, improve), I’d happily ask them back.

Score: 6.5/10

Francheska: “Tonight Again” is completely awesome. Guy is such a talented vocalist, and he clearly had access to a superb production team. Every time I listen, I hear another instrument in the background, and it continues to dazzle. It reminds me of a blend of “Uptown Funk” by Bruno Mars, “Love Me Again” by John Newman, and “Get Ready” by the Temptations, and that seriously is so amazing. I’m beyond happy that modern R ‘n B is getting the recognition it deserves at Eurovision — and with such an amazing song!

Score: 9.5/10

Josh: How cool that I get to review a song from my own country! Firstly, I know there are a lot of Australia haters this year, but this is happening whether you like it or not. If you don’t want us back next year, don’t vote Australia. Simples. Onto the song, ‘Tonight Again’ isn’t a horrible song. I quite like Guy Sebastian’s more recent back catalogue and this song is perfect for the style of music he does best. It’s catchy, and it’s fun. The song might be a little slow, which loses it’s danceability, but overall it’s a pretty good effort which I hope does translate into votes.

Score: 7.5/10

Deban: Australia ain’t playing, and Guy Sebastian’s selection is proof of that. An accomplished reality TV star with 7 platinum albums, 25 ARIA nominations, and 6 number one singles – it doesn’t get more heavyweight than this! “Tonight Again” has a nostalgic feeling. It’s jazzy shimmerings marry well with pop. With Sebastian’s punchy vocals driving this contemporary number, you know it’s going to SLAY in Vienna.

Score: 7/10

Denise: I was so hoping for a song like ”Like a Drum”, so when he announced it would probably be a ballad, I was a little upset. This song is something totally different with a jazz feel. It’s not one of my favourites, but it’s actually pretty good and Guy can definately sing. His little kids showing up in the video is really sweet and makes me like it even more.

Score: 8/10

Chris: Australia’s debut is a good, but not great effort. However, in a year where there’s so many contenders, I have a feeling that with the right “push” behind it, “Tonight Again” could still rise through the ranks and pick up the victory. It feels like a modern Guy Sebastian song. He performs it brilliantly live, but Australia will need to get the staging right and hide the repetitive nature of the song – which isn’t surprising, given how slapdash the production cycle was.

Score: 7/10

Robyn: It might have been done deliberately to stand out amid the ballads, but I’m so glad that Australia have entered a fun, upbeat and highly danceable song for their debut. Guy Sebastian is an experienced and confident performer and everything is there for this to be a great moment at the final. And I share Josh’s excitement – it’s so great to see an act from down under in the competition this year!

Score: 8/10

William: The first time I heard “Tonight Again” I was unmoved and wanted to get back to the Neighbours omnibus. I just don’t like this style of music. But then I heard Guy sing it live and oh my god it was amazing! Other artists rely on backing tracks and Auto-Tune, but Guy relies on Guy. He’s got the swagger, the soul and the voice to turn an OK song into a great one. I’m not convinced it deserves to win, but increasingly I think that it might.

Score: 6.5/10

Our first reaction (16 March)

Dreaming of Guy (23 February)

Our jury consists of 29 people, but we only have room for 10 written reviews. Here are the remaining 19 scores. 

Anthony: 6/10

Judit: 9/10

Kristin: 7.5/10

Liam: 9.5/10

Luis: 7/10

Marek: 7/10

Mario: 7.5/10

Max: 8/10

Mike: 7/10

Mikhail: 9/10

Patrick: 4/10

Ramadan: 6/10

Renske: 8.5/10

Rezo: 7/10

Sami: 8.5/10

Sinan: 10/10

Sopon: 5/10

William C: 9/10

Zach: 4/10

To reduce potential bias, we drop the highest and lowest scores prior to calculating the average. We removed a low of 4 and a high of 10.

WIWI JURY AVERAGE: 7.54/10

SEE OUR CURRENT EUROVISION 2015 REVIEWS AND RANKINGS

42 Comments
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TeleRoger
TeleRoger
8 years ago

Welcome Australia
It may well be for one night only but it could be Tonight Again for an Oz win.
Very catchy and love the brass section wonder if they will be onstage.
It’s gonna be fun it’s gonna be popular and that’s what the ESC is all about

Deven O'Kearney
8 years ago

I have made my prediction. I think:

Australia will win with 299 points.
Sweden 2nd with 257 points
Italy 3rd with 223 points

Open ended after that.

escaus
escaus
8 years ago

“we hit up canberra” .. ew no, dont go to canberra pls. aint nothing or nobody there but bad food

Daniel
Daniel
8 years ago

Not a fan. 5.5/10.

David
David
8 years ago

I don’t like this song… I can’t understand why the critics say it’s good and why people will vote for Australia. I hope they don’t get a Top 5. (It’s obvious that Guy will be in top10 only because it’s Australia…)

Huh
Huh
8 years ago

I’m afraid that this might even reach top 5. Plenty of countries will be disappointed. But if Australia ever wins, I hope they consider Italy to host next year’s contest.

ct
ct
8 years ago

Sounds like a song from a commercial. And really, I can’t think of anything worse to imitate at Eurovision than Bruno Mars. As if we haven’t had enough of him already at the radio.

Otna
Otna
8 years ago

This song is so mediocre… I’m really disappointed because Guy could have come up with something a whole lot better…

Alison
Alison
8 years ago

@Carlos They make clear that they are not music professionals… Statistically this number of people is not a prediction of what will happen on the night and that is not the point of this website, it’s just a collection of opinions of other fans for us to read and discuss – there’s absolutely no need to be rude.

Jurgen
Jurgen
8 years ago

@Carlos: I think this song is bad too. But the bookies love this song, everyone who has heard it live loves this song…so maybe it’s you and I who have bad taste 🙂 With all the hype surrounding Australia, he will do great I’m sure

Leo
Leo
8 years ago

I reckon Australia will place in the top 10, maybe even top five but he won’t win.

Leo Wyatt
Leo Wyatt
8 years ago

Seriously , how could this not be on top ? I mean the Belgian one is trash compared to this

2015
2015
8 years ago

”If you don’t want Australia back then don’t vote for it”. We people are not voting for Australia cause we don’t want them back, but because the song isn’t that good. Still i know alot of great singers from Australia and they’ll do great at Eurovision, however… this is not the best they can do… 1/10

Deniz@TurkNL
Deniz@TurkNL
8 years ago

8,8/10

It is not very eurovision and very outside eurovision and I am happy with this kind of style. He sings amazingly live and he has Charisma. He was on the Dutch TV and he was just really humble and friendly. I hope he will do well.

Fatima
Fatima
8 years ago

An uncharacteristic downbeat review from y’all. I liked it from the first time I heard it William, and then I started to looking forward the elements. The horns, the Ooh-ahh-ooh backing singers, the do-what-you-wants, the Oh get-on-it / Ooo get-on-its.
I think that it’s cool that this is a song which could be about the night of the contest. We’d all like to do it all again. The sentiment hits home nicely.

Francisco
Francisco
8 years ago

Not impressed, it sounds like the kind of song which would be used as the opening credits of some teenage tv-series. Pity, because the singer has a very good voice which is underused in here, and don’t get me started on the lyrics…

Racal
Racal
8 years ago

I think Australia is not to be underestimated at all… A “sexy” attractive country like Oz will surely get a lot of voting (especially since new countries always seems to enjoy a lot of sympathy votes). They will not benefit from any neighboring votes, but they have strong historical/cultural ties with the UK which might compensate.

The song and the singer are also quite good. I wouldn’t be surprised if Australia won the whole thing.

JonathanUK
JonathanUK
8 years ago

The jury this year are completely off-the-Mark. They really need to just go back and re-consider their scores as some of the most beautiful songs are criminally underrated and others (Ehem, Australia and Iceland) are just TOO overrated.

Per
Per
8 years ago

Bronson: Iceland are so mutch better than Albania and Australia.

Bronson
Bronson
8 years ago

Okay I’m not trying to throw shade at the Wiwi Jury but how the hell does Albania and Australia get a lower score than ICELAND????

Carlos
Carlos
8 years ago

I think wiwibloggs is a great site, but the critics don’t have any musical base or knowledge. That song is stupid. Your critics don’t deserve respect.

Per
Per
8 years ago

This song is so boooooring. For me its place 27/27. 0/10.

Auggie
Auggie
8 years ago

For me, this is quite a good song and I do like it. I was actually hoping that a more powerful voice (Delta Goodrem) or an Aussie novel act (Dami Im or Samantha Jade) would be picked instead of him, but after the song came in and everything, I was like: Guy, I’m all yours!!!! Good luck Australia!

Alison
Alison
8 years ago

@Darren I’m intrigued as to which songs are making this sea of 90s Disney that you think we are in this year?? Ok there are some but the vast majority don’t fall into that category. More of a puddle.

Alison
Alison
8 years ago

He’s got a great voice and performs well on stage but the song itself is very middle of the road imo. There’s no spontaneity in the song, it goes exactly where you expect which is not bad but a bit dull. I’d give it a 6/10.

Zac
Zac
8 years ago

“Simples” I loled.

Briekimchi
Briekimchi
8 years ago

On a sidenote, almost every Wiwi jury article has comments still complaining about the Iceland rating. Although I am was as shocked as anyone, it is time to let it go! Australia are sending a song that is my kind of music. Guy Sebastian is an excellent vocalist who is really going to deliver on the night and there is a serious novelty factor about having Australia enter. Having said that, I do not understand why this is being talked about as a potential winner. It does not have the standout quality that the best entries do this year. A… Read more »

CookyMonzta
CookyMonzta
8 years ago

Very professionally done. He was 10th in my 1st evaluation and 2nd in my 2nd evaluation. He will most likely stay in my top 10 after my 3rd and final evaluation. Big props (and big points) for showing some love to his crew in his video.

Darren
Darren
8 years ago

Nice song, it oozes modernity, especially in a sea of 90s disney that we appear to be “blessed” with this year. Guy is a great performer, already well established in Australia as a judge on Australian X-Factor. BUT I really dont want Australia to win, it will mess up next years production, a European country will lose out in an actual European contest to a non-European country, but its a damn good song…why couldn’t the UK or Ireland have this song? 😛 Best of look to Guy and Australia, I hope this is a once off though but that you… Read more »

mocosuburbian
mocosuburbian
8 years ago

oh, and I actually agree with Mario for the second time in forever

mocosuburbian
mocosuburbian
8 years ago

so this is the 28th entry
which means that Finland is the first country to be booted out of the final
hmmm

Ewan
Ewan
8 years ago

Jerome: everything you’ve said is exactly how I feel about this song as another Australian. It’s catchy and bound to do well, buy it’s not the best and I don’t think it deserves to win.
The choruses are great and will be what gets the crowd moving but the verses… Well, they’re so typical of a Guy Sebastian song it’s annoying.

Mario My Vision of Gay Love
Mario My Vision of Gay Love
8 years ago

Im not really a fan of Australia’s song.. At first i liked it more but now i like it in less degree 4 the record.. I had it in my top25-30 but now it has dropped how many places & i have it 35th on my top40.. Its nice enough song & cute…But its not that good though.. Its just a nice radio friendly song that you hear on the radio all the time.. I find it not not great enough song to be considered as the 3rd hot favorite to win among the bookies.. And it doesn’t matter to… Read more »

Maltish
Maltish
8 years ago

@WTF: That harsh.

Jerome
Jerome
8 years ago

6.5/10 Oh boy, my own country! I see that a lot of people view Guy’s entry as a serious contender and it makes my score kinda low, which makes me feel bad. I haven’t properly experienced what it is like to actually be nationally represented in a contest like Eurovision. I only remember World Idol back in 2004, and Guy, being the first winner of Australian Idol, was also our representative. I don’t know what everyone else would think if you rooted for another country other than your own (I remember rooting for Norway and the US at World Idol… Read more »

WTF
WTF
8 years ago

I will pray for Iceland’s failure, don’t worry… Day in, day out… With every breath I take, with every ounce of my being… Their cardinal sin of not sending Sunday shall never be forgiven… My soul will not rest until I see María Ólafs leaving Vienna in tears…

Jurgen
Jurgen
8 years ago

It’s so boring. 5/10

Alex
Alex
8 years ago

the song is so catchy, Guy has incredible vocals…. but i doubt Europeans will vote massively for a country that is too far away from Europe. I hope it enters the top 5 though because it deserves to do well. It is contemporary and catchy.

Maltish
Maltish
8 years ago

Lol a 7.54 so not expected 😛

WTF
WTF
8 years ago

My nickname says it all, really…

WTF
WTF
8 years ago

Tell me you did not just rank a potential winner nearly 1 point below Iceland… This is beyond my understanding…

Easpag
Easpag
8 years ago

The song is good, but not great. Guy is a great live performer, but the whole package is a lacking to challenge for the win, I feel.

7/10